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Every Business Should Have General Liability Coverage

- - (Provider Insurance Group, Inc.) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 13:44:48 -0700

It is widely thought that General Liability Insurance should be reserved for big businesses because it is so expensive. Not true. General liability policies are less expensive than you might think. All businesses should invest in a general liability policy in order to ensure that they are covered in every way possible. These days, people are extra quick to file lawsuits- and your average Business Owners Policy (BOP) may not provide enough coverage to take care of all your possible costs.

When shopping for general liability Insurance, you should be aware of the perceived risk of your business and the requirements of the state in which your business is located. Based on the type of business that you operate, you may or may not need a lot of liability coverage. The lower the amount of coverage, the lower the rate you will have to pay. Even if your business does not have a lot of risk, you should still purchase a general liability policy to protect yourself. The state in which your business is located is important in that you should pay close attention to the amount of damages that are generally reward by the courts in the state in regard to liability issues.

General liability coverage doesn't have to be expensive. Provider Insurance can write you an affordable general liability policy that you can depend on. Visit our Virtual Insurance Office today to learn more about the business insurance options we offer and to get a free online quote.

Healthcare Reform and its effect on your Massachusetts Business

- - (Provider Insurance Group, Inc.) — Fri, 15 May 2009 14:41:44 -0700

A major campaign promise of President Barack Obama was to reform the health-care program in the United States. Next month, Congress will begin tacking the huge and controversial issue of health care, trying to decide to make it more accessible and more affordable. As the debate rolls on, you can expect that the effect that health-care reform will have on small businesses will be quite a hot button issue. The millions of uninsured workers at companies with less 100 employees make up a large segment of all workers without coverage. With the number of small companies offering benefit packages continuing to decline, and the insurance premiums paid by small companies continuing to rise, it is a big objective of Congress to lower health-care costs for small business, make their benefits packages more competitive with their larger competitors, and improve the overall health of their workforce.

The President is attempting to enact a plan that lowers healthcare costs and expands coverage by the end of the year. Will small businesses be positively affected by the new plan? Only time will tell. If the legislation effectively cuts costs and has the ability to insure more people, it looks to be a promising improvement for small businesses looking to insure their employees. The big issues in the healthcare debate center around cost, who will have to pay, what qualifies as a "small business", and the type of help a small business will actually receive?

Due to the competing interests of employers, insurers, doctors, and hospitals, the path that healthcare reform may take could be a long and difficult one. Although you may be under the impression that you may have to wait to purchase affordable health insurance for your business until after a reform bill passes, you may be surprised to learn that inexpensive options exist today. By choosing to purchase your business's policy from an independent agency, you will have an agent that will search the country to get you the best rate available. If you are searching for a comprehensive business insurance package that includes healthcare coverage for your employees, stop by Provider Insurance's Virtual Insurance Office.

Swine Flu and Pandemics: How Your Business Can Stay Healthy.

- - (Provider Insurance Group, Inc.) — Thu, 30 Apr 2009 14:20:03 -0700

Swine flu has taken the nation by storm- maintaining the top spot in the news for nearly a week. Although the virus originated in Mexico, it has turned up in states across the U.S., recently popping up in Massachusetts and making a possible appearance in Rhode Island. So- what to do now? Panic? Before you become concerned, try to avoid the media hype and look at the situation logically.

Even though the swine flu situation as not become a full-on crisis, you should still take steps to ensure that your organization is prepared to epidemics and pandemics. A plan of action in the event of an epidemic is an important part of a business risk management plan. In our current economic climate- where individuals may come to work despite poor health for fear of losing their job- a plan to combat waves of illness is critical.

To keep your employees happy and healthy,

Maintain a clean office environment. Try taking different measures to make sure your employees wash their hands, and place hand sanitizers and pocket wipes in appropriate areas of your office.
Have employees travel only in necessary circumstances. There are circumstances where some employees must travel- but those that travel can also bring bugs back with them you’re your office.
Make sure employees are aware that they can take sick time. If your employees know they can stay home when they are sick without being fired, it may stop them from coming in and infecting the rest of your office.

And if your employees do get sick, they will be happy that your business insurance includes group benefit plans to protect your employee’s health. To learn more about business insurance, or to purchase a group health benefits plan, visit Provider Insurance’s Virtual Insurance Office right now.

How Can I Disaster-Proof my Business?

- - (Provider Insurance Group, Inc.) — Mon, 20 Apr 2009 10:15:28 -0700

Business that take a hit, recover more quickly if they plan in advance for what “could happen”. The best businesses have disaster plans, collective processes, and the right insurance to protect them from the unexpected. Purchasing a comprehensive insurance plan can help your company rebound from an injured employee, a damaged building or a lawsuit. Although business insurance is a necessity, you should develop and maintain an adequate recovery plan, and use the claims process as a “just in case” backup alternative.

You can decrease the risk of damage from an accident through:

Fire Safety Training.
Providing employees with fire safety training is essential. Those responsible for storage areas, housekeeping, maintenance and those operations involving flame or flammable substances should absolutely have fire training.

Check Your Electrical System.
Faulty wiring causes a large percentage of commercial related fires. Make you modernize your electrical system.

Choose a Fire-Resistant Building.
Choosing a building made from non-combustible materials with firewalls with help fire from spreading throughout your office. Also- make sure that your building has a fire alarm and sprinkler system.

If your disaster plan does not help in minimizing your exposure to risk, at least you always have a great business insurance package to fall back on. If you are searching for your company’s first policy, or a new one, Provider Insurance Group may provide you with what you’ve been looking for. We are an independent insurance agency with offices in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. With our Virtual Insurance Office, you can get an online quote on business insurance at any time of day. See how much you can save- check out Provider Insurance Group’s insurance products right now.

Avoid Debt: Purchase Health Insurance

- - (Provider Insurance Group, Inc.) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 14:11:23 -0700

Health insurance is a touchy subject. Those who have health insurance, although lucky, have seen their premiums continually rise. Those who lack health coverage must face the reality that if they become sick or are involved in an accident, they will almost surely end up in debt covering their medical bills.

I was just speaking with a friend of mine who knows a young woman who recently graduated from college- Ashley. Ashley graduated at the top of her class, and earned a position at a prestigious pharmaceutical company upon graduation. During the summer before she was scheduled to begin her job, on a routine doctor’s visit, she received some troubling news: she would need surgery. A broken bone in her hand had gone undetected, and it was beginning to affect her mobility. Unfortunately, Ashley had stopped being covered under her mother’s insurance once graduated, forcing her to pay for her procedure out of pocket.

After her surgery, Ashley was left in a massive amount of debt. The costs of her surgery, without insurance, were astronomical. With her newly acquired debt, it was difficult for her to maintain the payments on her new car, afford her monthly rent, and handle her utility bills. Her debt was such a weight, that it forced her to move home with her parents and take a lesser paying position with less prestige.

Ashley’s story is heartbreaking- but it’s not uncommon. We hear these stories all the times- tales of the uninsured who are left picking up the pieces of their lives after an accident or health scare. The only sure way to protect yourself from the unexpected, and avoid potential debt, is to invest in a health insurance plan.

You can learn more about your Health Insurance options with Provider Insurance Group. You can visit our Virtual Insurance Office 24 hours a day to learn more about your options, and to request a free, online health insurance quote.

Have Young Americans Been Forgotten By The Insurance Industry?

- - (Provider Insurance Group, Inc.) — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 14:51:59 -0700

Young adults, ages 19 to 29, are the largest age group of uninsured Americans. Many 20-somethings early in their careers are out of school, too old to be covered by their parent's insurance policy and don't have jobs that offer health benefits.

Only about one-half of all young adults who are working are offered coverage through an employer. Compare that to about 75 percent of adults over age 30 who are offered coverage through an employer, and the rate for coverage for young professionals looks incredibly low. Even more disturbing is that this lack of insurance coverage is a common problem. According to the latest data from the Census Bureau, in 2007, there were an estimated 13.2 million uninsured young adults. It's the fastest growing group of the 46 million uninsured Americans today.

But what can young people do? Check in with your state- 25 percent have increased the age of dependency, so you may still be able to fall under your parents insurance coverage. Additionally, insurance agencies are beginning to take notice of the growing number of young people who are uninsured. Although, insurance is often thought of as huge investment, many agencies now offer policies that are more affordable than you may think. You may also receive discounts based on your education and health history.

It is never too early to protect your health. If you are a young person that lacks coverage, visit www.providerig.com to learn about your options, or to get a free insurance quote.

Cyber Liability Devastation: Three Stories

- - (Provider Insurance Group, Inc.) — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 21:52:58 -0800

Cyber liability is becoming a bigger and bigger threat to nearly any company that handles private information. Does your company handle this type of information? If so, are you sure that you are adequately covered in the event that the information you're working with gets "loose"?

Here are a few examples of how cyber liability devastated a business:

A small law firm decided to upgrade all of their business computers, which meant re-formatting their hard drives. They did so, only to have the thrown-out hard drives be discovered by a hacker, who proceeded to restore their data and disclose financial records and personal issues of the company's private clients.
The transportation system of a large city accidentally published the Social Security numbers of roughly 4,700 past and present employees on its website. The numbers were posted with a solicitation to companies for workers' compensation and risk management services.
A company's main server suffered a spam attack, which took over the computers' capacity to respond to requests by sending up to 200 fake requests a second. This cost the company $50,000 due to business interruption, not to mention the cost of rebuilding their server.

This is why it's vital to protect your business with cyber liability insurance. Make sure your agent understands this developing type of coverage and how important it is.

For more information on cyber liability, contact us today! We're Provider Insurance, an independent agency based in Needham, Massachusetts.